# 61 Genealogies: Not As Boring As You May Think

The Book of Genesis Day 61 Ge 5:1 This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created. 3 And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he had sons and daughters. 5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died. 6 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begot Enosh. 7 After he begot Enosh, Seth lived eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died. 9 Enosh lived ninety years, and begot Cainan. 10 After he begot Cainan, Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years, and had sons and daughters. 11 So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died. 12 Cainan lived seventy years, and begot Mahalalel. 13 After he begot Mahalalel, Cainan lived eight hundred and forty years, and had sons and daughters. 14 So all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died. 15 Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and begot Jared. 16 After he begot Jared, Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years, and had sons and daughters. 17 So all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died. 18 Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begot Enoch. 19 After he begot Enoch, Jared lived eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 20 So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died. 21 Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. 22 After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. 25 Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and begot Lamech. 26 After he begot Lamech, Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he died. 28 Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. 29 And he called his name Noah, saying, "This one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD has cursed." 30 After he begot Noah, Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years, and had sons and daughters. 31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he died. 32 And Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Genealogies. They make for boring reading, but they are very instructive and God has placed them in His Word for good reasons! This entire chapter is devoted to the genealogy of Adam, but it is important to note that it is not meant to be a complete list of all of Adam’s children. Rather, it is meant to be the thread of Righteousness (make that a capital R for the Redeemer) from Adam all the way to Noah. These genealogies are quite common ion Scripture. We will read of the genealogies of Noah’s sons after the flood, with special attention to the genealogy of Shem. Why? Because the thread of Righteousness continues through him all the way to Abraham. In the New Testament, the genealogy of Jesus is traced all the way back to Abraham in the Gospel of Matthew, and in the Gospel of Luke, it is traced all the way back to Adam! Why does Matthew stop at Abraham? Good question. He stops there because Matthew was written primarily for a Jewish audience, and Abraham was the starting point of their nation. Meanwhile, Luke was primarily written with the Gentile in mind, and hence he goes all the way back to the beginning of the Gentiles! Generally speaking, you will find these genealogies linked to covenants of God’s grace. The genealogy of Adam is linked to the covenant, or promise, of God to provide Eve with the Righteous Seed that would one day crush the head of the serpent. (the devil) The genealogy shows up again in the days of Noah, with the sign of the rainbow in the clouds, another graceful promise of God that He will never destroy the earth again via a flood. This covenant is forever linked to the waters of baptism in 1Pe 3:20,21, “when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. 21 There is also an antitype which now saves us--baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” The genealogy of Abraham links Him to blessing all the families of the earth through faith in Jesus. Ge 15:5,6, “Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be." 6 And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness. And of course, the genealogy of Jesus links Him to all these covenants and marks the beginning of the New Covenant or the New Testament. And here’s the thing about the New Covenant, the only genealogy or “family tree” that you’ll find in the New Testament that matters is the one that finds you as part of the “living vine, because of your God-granted faith in Jesus. Jesus said in Joh 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. Through baptism (Noah’s covenant) and faith in Jesus (Abraham’s covenant) you become a part of the genealogy of Righteousness that was first named here in Genesis! Mr 16:16 "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. Reflect: Read chapter 5 again and underline all the names you recognize How far back can you trace your family tree? Do you have a “spiritual genealogy?” Can you trace it back or forward? What does it take to become a part of the Living Vine? Pray: Father, thank You for including these genealogies in Scripture. It reminds us that You keep good books. Grant us the enduring faith we need to be found in Your Book of Life.